


The Misfortune of Kim Seungmin

by tuanpark



Category: K-pop, Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: A couple of one-sided ships if you truly squint, Attempt at Humor, Banter, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Han Jisung | Han is Whipped, Humor, I'm not funny but I tried lol, Kim Seungmin is Oblivious, Kissing, Light Angst, Lots of people kissed because of Spin the Bottle so I'm not gonna tag all of them, M/M, Making Out, Seungjin are ex-boyfriends and they're lowkey over it lowkey not so you can decide, Yang Jeongin | I.N is a Sweetheart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-12 07:38:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20560646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tuanpark/pseuds/tuanpark
Summary: “So let me get this straight. Hyunjin, your ex-boyfriend Hyunjin, asked you to go on a double date. And despite the fact that you have no real boyfriend, you said yes, and now you’re bringing Han Jisung, your pretend boyfriend who, may I remind you, you find quite irritating more than half the time. Tell me again why you thought this was a good idea?”or My ex just showed up with their new partner, and I don’t want them to win this breakup (a fake dating/pretend SeungSung AU that nobody asked for)





	The Misfortune of Kim Seungmin

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cherryjaem](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryjaem/gifts).

> Hello! My friend [cherryjaem](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryjaem/pseuds/cherryjaem) and I wanted to contribute to SeungSung nation because SeungSung deserves better. If you stumbled across this fic, I am sorry. But please, read their fic too and give comments and kudos!
> 
> I haven't edited this, but I've been writing since 1pm and it's almost 10pm, and I am tired. So sorry for the mistakes that you see. I'm sure there are some. Apologies if some stuff didn't make sense because I wrote this all out of order. Started with middle, beginning, ending, more middle, etc... Happy reading!
> 
> Follow my Twitter: @[seungminhot](https://twitter.com/seungminhot) !!! KUDOS AND COMMENTS PLEASE, I BEG.
> 
> **Disclaimer**: I don't own any of the characters, and all the scenes written are purely fiction.

Seungmin would like to start with the fact that he has bad luck with a lot of things.

And it just so happens that one of those things is having to sit next to a rather talkative guy in class. Talkative is quite an understatement considering Han Jisung doesn’t really know when to close his mouth, but that’s neither here nor there. Sometimes, when Jisung is speaking a mile a minute, Seungmin wonders how he’s even able to breathe.

What grates Seungmin most is that Jisung sort of follows him around in class. It’s not a big deal, truly. But the thing that makes this situation rather unfortunate is the fact that Jisung would always choose the seat next to Seungmin, regardless of where the seat is located.

When Seungmin chooses the front, Jisung enters the class and would hurry right next to him. When Seungmin goes to the back, Jisung would scour the area before his eyes would land on Seungmin, and he’ll go sit there as well. Even when Seungmin plants himself right in the middle, in the rows that are difficult to get to, Jisung would happily pursue the seat next to Seungmin’s.

Seungmin once thought of getting to class _ after _Jisung, but the fact that the older boy would enter two or so minutes after the lecture starts has Seungmin dismissing this idea. While he would like to escape Jisung, he also doesn’t want to miss anything important that the professor has to say. So he just has to grin and bear it, just as he’s doing now.

“Rice cake, mind if I sit here?”

Seungmin shows his distaste at the nickname. Jisung gave it to him the first day they met this quarter, almost six weeks ago by now. “You kind of remind me of a rice cake,” he had said and continued to ask for his number in case he ends up missing class and not hearing about homework. Seungmin, reluctant to give his number, provided his instagram instead. That was fine though, Seungmin barely went on it.

“Not like it would stop you from sitting there if I said yes,” Seungmin shrugs.

“Touché.”

Thankfully, Jisung is rather quiet today, but that changes somewhere in the middle of the lecture when he begins to get bored.

“—and then my friend, Minho-hyung… wait, I’ve told you about Minho-hyung, right? Super cute, always glaring, thick thighs? Yeah, he started texting right in front me while we were having dinner, and that’s just not cool you know because—”

Seungmin tunes him out at this point and starts nodding along, but Jisung leans over to emphasize his story-telling, and okay. Okay. If Seungmin is being truthful, Jisung smells really good, as if he took extra precaution to smell and look nice today. Seungmin thinks he smells strawberry conditioner and a crispy cologne that has Seungmin’s mind going fuzzy. He’d be the last to tell Jisung he has a nice scent though.

“—but I guess that’s nothing to be mad about. It’s just that sometimes, I dislike it when he’s not paying attention to me. Not just him too, just about everyone!”

“Perhaps he had something really important to reply to,” Seungmin whispers as he begins to jot down the notes their professor is writing down. “And can you not speak so close to my face. I don’t want my ears to smell like your morning breath.”

Seungmin feels Jisung blow on his ears. If Seungmin wasn’t in class right now, he’d hiss at Jisung and maybe throat punch him, but alas.

“Hmm, I don’t think that’s it,” Jisung replies as he looks over Seungmin’s shoulder. “Wow. I know I’ve said this before, but you have really pretty handwriting.”

Seungmin rubs the back of his neck. He’s never been good at taking compliments, so he just nods and says, “Thanks. Yours is chicken scratch though.”

“I was being nice? Jesus.”

Later, when the professor dismisses them, Seungmin is quick to leave even though Jisung always tries to be friendly and ask him about studying together. Seungmin can’t even begin to fathom how he’d be able to study with Jisung’s constant chatter.

He speedwalks his way to the campus café. Seungmin doesn’t usually brag, but he’s pretty decent at speedwalking. It’s not just the fact that he has long legs. He supposes it’s because he’s gay, and statistics show that gay people seem to walk faster than their heterosexual counterpart. One theory suggests that it’s because they walk to the beat of Britney Spears’ Toxic. This has yet to be proven untrue.

When he gets to the line, he takes a deep breath. He’s about to pull out his wallet when he hears Jisung talking rapidly into the phone as he usually does.

“—look into it for you, if you’d like. But I have to hang up now though. I just got in line to grab something to drink. Okay. Okay, later!”

Seungmin knows the voice is terribly close. He turns around, already knowing that the little weasel is right behind him.

“Really?” Seungmin says disbelievingly. “You following me outside of class now too?”

Jisung snickers. “Well, fancy meeting you here too! What, do you own the campus café now as well? I’m just trying to buy a drink, rice cake.”

Seungmin huffs and turns around. Sure he is. Perhaps Jisung will prove to be not annoying if Seungmin pretends he doesn’t exist. So he decides to peruse the list of drinks on the menu, checking their prices and contemplating what’s worth the price and what isn’t when he hears Jisung again.

“What are you thinking of getting?” pipes up the other boy, pursing his lips as he scratches his chin in thought. “I’m thinking of getting either a caramel macchiato. Or perhaps a hot chocolate.” 

Seungmin twists to face Jisung once more, about to tell him to _ please stop talking _when he sees Hyunjin and Changbin enter the room. Oh shit. So long story short, Hyunjin is Seungmin’s ex-boyfriend. They’ve broken up for almost a year now. And while they parted ways as likely friends, they haven’t exactly gotten over the awkward phases of being ex-boyfriends, but that doesn’t stop them from trying, as disastrous and unsuccessful as it may be.

“-ricano is pretty cheap too, so maybe I’ll get that.”

Seungmin faces Jisung and nods, putting on a smile that doesn’t quite feel right on his face. “I’d go for the second one.”

“Ew, you’re smiling,” Jisung points out just as Seungmin hears Hyunjin getting closer.

“Seungminnie?” Hyunjin calls with an unusually high voice. “Hey, it’s been a while!”

Sure has.

“Oh!” Seungmin exclaims, hopes he doesn’t sound too fake. “I didn’t see you there. Hello.”

Hyunjin grins at him, the hint of uneasiness noticeable on his face. And then he motions towards the boy next to him, with dark clothes and sharp eyes and a smile that can make Seungmin’s knees go a little weak. Doesn’t change the fact that he’s a dwarfling though. “You know Changbin-hyung, right?”

Of course he knows Changbin. Hyunjin has mentioned him a couple of times in passing. Seungmin is not a stalker, per se, but he _ has _ scrolled through Hyunjin’s instagram once or twice or maybe eight times since they broke up, but that’s neither here nor there. It’s not as if he’s still stuck on Hyunjin, god no. He only opens Hyunjin’s page to see if he’s found a boyfriend yet. Seungmin was shocked to find that he wasn’t affected when he saw the first Changbin post on Hyunjin’s instagram, but rather annoyed at the fact that he managed to lay hands on a boyfriend before Seungmin.

“Yeah,” Seungmin smiles, the embarrassment catching up to him. There’s an unsettling feeling clawing at his stomach, and Seungmin knows it’s his pride trying to stand up for itself. “Pleasure to finally meet you.”

“You too,” Changbin agrees, and there’s a smile on his face that looks annoyingly genuine. Seungmin wants to dislike the guy, but there’s no justifiable reason to do so. He’ll settle for not hating the guy, though that doesn’t mean he likes him either.

“And who might this be?” Hyunjin gestures towards the boy next to Seungmin.

“This is Jisung,” Seungmin turns to the shorter boy. Seungmin doesn’t know what to blame it on. It’s equal parts pride, an unhealthy competitive spirit, and blatant stupidity. Curse his mouth for moving faster than his brain. “Jisung is my boyfriend.”

Jisung whips his head so fast that Seungmin wonders how it didn’t break his neck. Seungmin is smiling and giving him a frantic helpless look to _ please go along with it, I’ll do anything_. Jisung seems to understand.

“Ah, yes,” Jisung shakes his head and turns to the other two males. “Hello, I’m Jisung, Seungmin’s boyfriend. Sorry, I was shocked that he said it so casually. Usually, we like to keep it private, so I was caught by surprise.”

Seungmin almost cries out of relief. That could have turned extremely bad if Jisung denied it.

“It’s okay, Ji,” Seungmin tries the nickname. It feels foreign, but he kind of likes how it sounds. Seungmin glances at Hyunjin and Changbin, both of whom don’t seem to find anything strange or off-putting. “They’re friends, it should be fine.”

Hyunjin beams at him. “I’m glad you trust us, Seungminnie.”

But Seungmin hears what Hyunjin doesn’t say. _ I’m glad you’re dating someone too. _

“Come on, it’s our turn to order, rice cake,” Jisung interrupts. Seungmin checks and sure enough, they’re next in line. He turns back to the other couple, surprised to see Hyunjin's high brow. From the nickname, perhaps?

“Well, it was nice little chat,” Seungmin breathes out. “I suppose I’ll see you guys around. Don’t be strangers.”

Changbin nods, and Hyunjin’s eyes light up the way they usually do when he thinks of an idea. Though more often than not, his ideas turn out for the worse, and Seungmin has an uncomfortable feeling that this one will be no different.

“Ooh, maybe we can have a double date!” Hyunjin suggests, and Seungmin’s mood sinks and tries not to let it show on his expression. While Seungmin wants to say no, he doesn’t have any valid reason to do so. He exchanges a look with Jisung, who for the first time, is also unsure how to respond.

“That sounds… like a time!” Seungmin replies. He looks back at the cashier to see that the cashier is only slightly annoyed, but Seungmin is sure that that’s just them wearing their customer service attitude on. “Just text me the details! Cashier person looks like they want to murder us for taking so long. See you around!”

Before Hyunjin can answer back, Seungmin is pulling Jisung along with a smile.

When they’re out of earshot, Jisung nudges Seungmin and gives him a flirtatious wink. “I didn’t realize we were boyfriends already, rice cake. You could have at least taken me out to dinner first.”

“Shut up,” Seungmin rolls his eyes.

“What can I get for you?” the cashier asks, now looking half amused and only half irritated.

Seungmin ends up getting a small café latte, while Jisung pays the bill with an order of iced Americano, under the guise of _ since this is basically our first date, let me pay for you_. Seungmin swears he almost flicked Jisung’s forehead right then and there.

When they receive their orders, they go to the milk and sugar station where they alter their beverages. Seungmin adds another shot of creamer and two packets of raw sugar, just the way he likes it. Jisung doesn’t add anything to his iced Americano.

“It’s beauty at it’s finest, rice cake. Who am I to alter natural beauty for the sake of my taste buds?”

Though when Jisung takes a sip, he makes a face that shows clearly how he’s not fond of the bitter taste of his drink. Seungmin has to hold back his laughter.

“If I didn’t know any better, I would have assumed that you’re pretending to like it because it makes you look older,” Seungmin smirks. Jisung sputters, and Seungmin thinks bullseye. “Which, now that I look at you, it works! With that cup of iced Americano, you don’t look like a hairless 14 year old. Just hairless!”

Jisung pinches him like the _ child _ that he is.

“What was that for?” Seungmin asks, rubbing the pained area with his free hand.

“That was for being annoyingly sharp and accurate,” Jisung sneers. “But you’re only half correct. The reason I don’t put cream and sugar is that I will literally vibrate and start bouncing off of walls if I intake caffeine and sugar at the same time.”

Seungmin shakes his head. And then they’re waving goodbye at Hyunjin and Changbin as they walk out the door.

“Well, that was interesting!” Jisung remarks with a knowing look. “I’m guessing you’ll be needing me for that double date your friend Hyunjin was talking about?”

“Not likely,” Seungmin replies. “He’s a forgetful person. I doubt he’ll remember. Anyway, I’ve had too much of you today, bye.”

Seungmin walks away before Jisung can even say anything.

It’s about two minutes of steady marching when he realizes that he forgot to express his gratitude to Jisung for pretending to be his boyfriend as well as paying for his drink. When he looks back, it’s to see that Jisung is already gone, so Seungmin decides to do it tomorrow.

***

It turns out, regardless of the fact that Hyunjin is a forgetful person, he ended up actually pulling through to organize that double date. It’s the day after when Hyunjin messages Seungmin about possibly going to _ noraebang _on the weekend. Seungmin sighs. Leave it to Hyunjin to actually remember unimportant things.

When Jisung enters the classroom for their Music History class, he’s already beaming at Seungmin and waving his arms like a maniac.

“Good morning,” Seungmin greets Jisung reluctantly. Jisung, as usual, takes the seat next to him.

“Morning, rice cake!” How Jisung can smile so wide in the early morning, Seungmin has no idea. “What do you suppose we’re going to learn about today? I hope he doesn’t drone on about the classics again. God, I don’t know how I sat through it yesterday.”

Seungmin chuckles.

“By the way, thank you for yesterday.” Seungmin gives him a close-lipped smile.

“Hmm?” Jisung turns to him, pouting. “Wh-What for?”

Seungmin scans around to see if anybody is eavesdropping. When he deems it safe enough, he leans over to Jisung a little bit. “For paying for my drink and pretending to be my boyfriend.”

“Pfffffttt.” Jisung scratches his cheek. “Oh, that? I mean, I have money to spend. And the other thing. That was nothing. That was more fun than anything.”

Seungmin laughs awkwardly. “Well, I appreciate it.”

“Mhm.”

He bites his lip, trying to work up the courage to just ask him to do it again. He’s done it before already, anyway. Plus he said it was fun, so there really isn’t anything that could go wrong from here.

“Actually, I was wondering if you could maybe, possibly do it… again?” Seungmin finishes incredulously. “Hyunjin actually went through and planned for us to go to _ noraebang_, and I don’t want to tell him no or else he’ll get hurt and think that I’m avoiding him or something.”

Jisung nods along, blinking. “So you need me to stand in as your boyfriend again?”

“Would that be okay?” asks Seungmin, grimacing at spending time with his ex-boyfriend, his ex-boyfriend’s current boyfriend, and an over-excited classmate.

“Do I get paid?” Jisung blinks at him in question, lips slowly forming a crooked smile.

“Will my good looks and charming personality be enough?”

Jisung releases a burst of laughter. “Sure, rice cake.”

***

Jeongin stares at him dumbfoundedly.

“So let me get this straight,” the younger boy says, crossing his arms from where he’s sat on the bed. They’re in Seungmin’s bedroom a couple of hours before the double date. “Hyunjin, your ex-boyfriend Hyunjin, asked you to go on a double date. And despite the fact that you have no real boyfriend, you said yes, and now you’re bringing Han Jisung, your pretend boyfriend who, may I remind you, you find quite irritating more than half the time. Tell me again why you thought this was a good idea?”

“I never said it was a good idea,” Seungmin replies, checking his outfit on the mirror. Having Jeongin as his closest friend is what his rotten luck has given him. The younger boy never cuddles him unless Seungmin begs and never shows outright affection unless it’s absolutely necessary. When it comes to Jeongin, Seungmin is a needy man.

“Not helping your case.”

“And I actually find Jisung annoying only half the time,” replies Seungmin. Jeongin needs to get his facts right.

Jeongin huffs. “Still not helping your case!”

“Besides, I need Hyunjin to stop looking at me like he pities me. It’s like he feels bad for discontinuing the relationship, even though we both agreed that the breakup was mutual.”

Jeongin shrugs. “Maybe he’s trying to find closure, who knows. All I know is that it was dumb for you to agree to all of this. If Hyunjin catches wind of the fact that you and Jisung are just pretending, imagine what he would think! Imagine how _ you _would feel.”

“He’d probably think I’m pathetic, but that’s already been established considering how he looks at me. Did I mention that he looks at me with pity? Because he looks at me with pity, and I can’t have that.”

Jeongin rolls his eyes. “If he already pities you, think of how much more he would do it when he finds out.”

“He’s not going to find out,” Seungmin counters. “And since you seem to know me better than myself, tell me then. On the off chance that he does find out, tell me how would _ I _ feel?”

His eyes find Jeongin in the reflection, and the younger boy looks at him in contemplation.

“Well first, you’ll panic because that’s just the kind of person you are. But more than that, you’d feel humiliated at trying to one-up your ex-boyfriend in front of his current boyfriend,” Jeongin answers, giving him a rather sympathetic look that Seungmin hates being on the receiving end of. “Though I think the overarching emotion would be shame. You’d be ashamed of the fact that Hyunjin is genuine in wanting you to find happiness as well, and you’re just here trying to save your pride by making wrong decisions.”

Seungmin chews on his lips and turns away so he’s not making eye contact with Jeongin. For someone so young (not really, Seungmin is just four and a half months older), he sure does have some wisdom in him.

“Well, then I guess we can’t let him find out.”

When he turns back, it’s to see Jeongin looking at him with worry.

“Okay,” Jeongin says, giving him a friendly smile. “I’m going to trust that you know what you’re doing. But if you get yourself hurt, don’t come crying to me because all I’m going to say is ‘I told you so.’”

“Me? Cry? As if.”

***

Getting antsy, Seungmin checks the time on his phone. It’s 7:45 pm, which means Jisung is going to get here at 7:50 and the couple not long after. Seungmin brushes off what little lint he sees on his pants.

Seungmin’s not even sure why he’s fussing. It’s just Jisung. He chalks it up to his slight discomfort at the thought of hanging out. He’ll be spending time with his ex-boyfriend after all. Regardless, he checks his shirt if there are any new stains he’s gathered from getting here. Nope! Still nice and wrinkle-free.

Sure enough, it’s about five minutes later when he sees Jisung down the street. For someone who’s not the tallest, he can easily be spotted, what with how he exudes such vibrant energy that you can’t help but look at him. He’s also waving his hands as high as he can and grinning at Seungmin like the sun, so there’s that too.

“Rice cake!” Jisung calls as soon as he’s of earshot. And then the older boy is eyeing Seungmin up and down, and Seungmin can’t help but feel a little like he’s under a microscope because of it. “Wow, you look spiffy today. I mean you usually do look spiffy, but you look even spiffier.”

Seungmin snorts and observes how Jisung is wearing a white long-sleeved button-up with a bad fit and boots that look way too big for his skinny legs. “Your outfit could use an upgrade, but your hair’s nice at least.”

Jisung punches him lightly on the arm and starts laughing. “Come on, don’t be mean. I know you know I look good. Stop denying me of my handsomeness.”

Who’s going to tell him?

Though Jisung does look good today, Seungmin will first purposefully fail a test before he tells him that.

“Where are they?” Jisung asks, tiptoeing to look past Seungmin. “You said to be here by 7:45?”

“I said that because I knew you would be late,” Seungmin snorts. “And look, here you are now, arriving late. They won’t be here until a little before 8.”

Seungmin sees Jisung glaring at him, so he sticks his tongue out in return. Gosh, hanging out with Jisung really cuts down his mental age by half.

“Anyway, what’s the plan?” Jisung asks, rubbing his hands together excitedly. “Are we going to be cheesy and lovey-dovey the whole time? Calling each other nicknames and stuff? I already call you ‘rice cake,’ so I think we have that in the bag. Maybe you can feed me food when we're there.”

What? 

“You’re a grown ass man, you don’t need me, another grown man, feeding you food like you’re five.”

“We can bicker who’s cuter in front of them. I mean, obviously I’m cuter, so you’re going to have to be really convincing with this one.”

Seungmin shakes his head. “What? I’m the cuter one out of the two of us. This is actually fact. So no, we don’t actually need to do that, especially not in front of them, oh god.”

“I’m cuter. End of discussion.”

Seungmin is about to argue but Jisung beats him before he can say another word.

“Anyhow, maybe you can readjust my collar or push your hands through my hair. That’ll definitely show them.” Jisung adds, nodding to himself as if he’s a genius. “You can snuggle up to me if you’re cold. That’ll be cute. Is it cold in there?”

“What are you talking about?” Seungmin demands, feeling himself heating up because Jisung isn’t making much sense. “I don’t think it’s cold in there. Regardless, we’re not going to do any of that. Why do we have to do all of that?”

Jisung cocks his head to the side. It kind of reminds Seungmin of a confused puppy. 

“Why are we pretending to be boyfriends? Isn’t it to make them jealous?” Jisung says all of this while he punches the air like he’s boxing. “Aren’t we faking it to show them that we’re the superior couple?”

Seungmin facepalms. “No, that’s definitely not it. We just have to make it look like we’re a real couple, so Hyunjin would stop looking down on me because I’m still single.”

“Hmm, well we still have to do all of that to be convincing,” Jisung furrows his brows. “Whatever reason it may be, we need to do the things I listed.”

Seungmin sighs. “We most certainly, do not. We can be convincing without being over the—”

But then Jisung is interrupting him and reaching out for Seungmin’s hand. “Quick, hold my hand.”

“Wh-wh-what? Why?” Seungmin mumbles, trying to escape from Jisung’s offending hand, but for someone who looks 4 feet and 25 pounds, he sure does have quite a strong grip.

“I’m pretty sure I just saw them. And we have to make it look like we’re into each other,” Jisung says as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “And that won’t happen if you act like you’re a vampire and I’m made of garlic. Look! Here they come now.”

Seungmin looks behind him, and just as Jisung pointed out, Hyunjin and Changbin are walking towards them with basically no space in between. Perhaps Jisung is right. They need to act more like Hyunjin and Changbin.

“Hey!” Seungmin greets as he points to the _noraebang_ behind him. “Ready to go?”

“Hello!” Hyunjin says as Changbin gives him a nod. “Yeah, they should have my reservation.”

The four of them are led to a dark, empty room in the back. They order different types of snacks, with Seungmin demanding that they must have _ gyeran jjim_. It’s only right. Steamed eggs are a must for every place.

Jisung goes first and picks a hardcore love song, “No Matter What” by Park Sang Cheol. The first few beats are loud and energetic, but Jisung is that if not more as he mimes playing the drums. Hyunjin joins him and acts as if he’s playing a trumpet.

“A couple of goons, they are,” Changbin says, smiling. “Two peas in a pod even though they barely know each other.”

“That they are,” Seungmin agrees. “Goons to the end.”

And then Jisung is singing the first line. Seungmin holds his breath because Jisung’s voice is nice and clear, and perhaps there are stars in Seungmin’s eyes but that’s another story.

“Wow,” Changbin says as Hyunjin cheers. “Your boyfriend is really good. I would’ve never been able to tell.”

Pfft. Seungmin would have never known had they not gone here.

“Yeah! That’s one of the things that caught my eye,” Seungmin mentions. And while that’s not exactly true, having a good singing voice is actually one of the things that Seungmin finds attractive.

Jisung keeps going, speeding up or slowing down when he needs to. Seungmin cheers from the back, lest he looks like a bad boyfriend. And they’re all standing up, dancing to Jisung’s singing. And then Jisung is copying the raspy voice that Park Sang Cheol does, and Seungmin admits it’s kind of hot and cheers more.

It’s in the latter stages of the song when Jisung belts the high note that they’re all truly jumping in excitement. When Jisung finishes, they all comment at his good singing voice, but Seungmin is the first to go to his side and start jumping up with him.

Hyunjin is picking the next song when Seungmin leans over to whisper to Jisung. “Wow, I didn’t know you were that good. That was awesome.”

“What can I say, rice cake? Human perfection comes at the form of Han Jisung.”

Seungmin snorts. “You’re so full of yourself, it’s almost offensive.”

“Just tell me I’m perfect and move on,” Jisung smirks.

“Never!”

And then Seungmin hears the opening of So Chan Whee’s “Tears” and immediately stands up and whoops. Fuck, he loves this song, loves how it starts with a melancholic tune before switching it up with an upbeat one.

“Good choice!” Jisung shouts from the side, and he too is standing up. Changbin is swaying with them now, grin on his face as Hyunjin begins singing.

They all try the pre-chorus, with one of their voices already cracking at how high it is. And then the chorus comes, and they're all sort of shriek-singing, notes all over the place since it’s way too high for them. But the main point is to have fun and not care. So that’s what they do, four boys basically screaming in a dark room for three minutes straight.

When Hyunjin finishes the last incredibly high note, terribly mind you, they all crowd him and give him a good petting on the head or a pat on the back.

And then Seungmin and Hyunjin are returning the seats as Changbin picks a song. Jisung is up there with him for support.

“How’s it going with you guys,” Hyunjin asks, smiling but wincing at how incredibly awkward it all is.

“We’re going well,” Seungmin tries, scratching his head. And then the first notes of “For You” by Im Jae Beom blares from the screen. Oh, he loves singing this song too, but something tells him that he should talk to Hyunjin right now. He doesn’t think they’ll have another time to hash things out like this, especially not with Changbin and Jisung in the room. And neither of them are man enough to text each other, so.

“We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Hyunjin gives him a tight-lipped smile. “I just want to know you’re doing well and stuff.”

“Of course I’m doing well, Jinnie,” Seungmin blurts, the nickname coming out of nowhere. He hasn’t said it in a while and surprised both Hyunjin and himself. “You don’t have to worry about me. I’m honestly doing fine.”

“Okay. I just can’t help but worry, you know,” Hyunjin confesses and looks at him with starry eyes. “I know I’m the one who shows my emotions to everybody so that I’m basically an open book, but you’re the one who prefers to keep it in and take things the hardest, you know?” 

“I know. But truthfully, I’ll be fine.” Seungmin swallows, staring at Hyunjin because why won’t he get it? Seungmin is fine and okay and doesn’t need the misplaced compassion that he’s giving Seungmin, as if Seungmin is someone to be pitied.

“I just want confirmation that you’re not blaming yourself for whatever happened.”

Seungmin blinks and holds Hyunjin’s hand and looks him directly in the eyes.

“I’m doing good, Jinnie,” Seungmin starts, using the nickname because he thinks this deserves it. “I don’t blame myself for what happened. I don’t blame you for what happened. So you don’t have to worry about me. Please, just worry about yourself, and I don’t mean this in an offensive way. I know you care, but I don’t think you need to care more than a friend does. That’s not fair to yourself. To Changbin-ssi. Or to me.”

Hyunjin is staring at him with glassy eyes.

“You’re right,” Hyunjin nods, tightening his grip on Seungmin’s hand. “I’m glad you’re good and that we’re good.”

Seungmin is too. He lets go of Hyunjin just as Changbin is about to finish with his song. Perhaps Hyunjin and Seungmin can become better friends than this, but right now is not the time. Somewhere down the road maybe.

And as Changbin does the last soulful note, all three of them erupt in encouragement. Changbin grins handsomely and bows before taking a seat. And then Seungmin has to go up and pick a song.

“You got this, rice cake!” Jisung yells from behind him, and Seungmin glares before turning back to the music machine. He goes for the absolute classic. Nothing beats this one. When he inputs it and the title shows up on the screen, the other boys start screaming.

“Emergency Room” by Izi plays and Seungmin goes up to the center before shooting a finger gun at Jisung. The other boy pretends to be shot at the heart. And then he’s making eye contact with Jisung as he sings about quarreling and regretting breaking up. And perhaps this isn’t the best song since Hyunjin is here, but honestly, he doesn’t care.

And almost as if Jisung noticed how he needed emotional support, he goes up to him and turns him to the screen. And then Jisung is hugging him from the back, hands around his waist as they sway to the mellow sound of the song. He hears Changbin and Hyunjin coo, but this isn’t about them.

Jisung hooks his chin over Seungmin’s shoulder, even though Seungmin is taller by a few centimeters. That’s okay though, they kind of make it work, and Jisung is even singing the song right next to his ears.

They keep singing like that, rocking from side to side to the beat of the music. Seungmin has to admit that they’re good at harmonizing, with Jisung one third above the melody as Seungmin stays in tune. And then, somewhere in the song, both Seungmin and Jisung belt the high note, and honestly he doesn’t think he’s ever harmonized like that with anyone. It’s literally music to his ears.

When the song finishes, they both stare at each other in shock, a little too long perhaps because Changbin judges from the side, “Do you two need the room to yourself or what?”

And then they’re all laughing, with Jisung and Seungmin going back to their own seats in a fit of giggles. The door opens with the food they ordered and they chat about university and how classes have been as Jisung sings a song at the same time.

The next couple of hours go like that, with each of them picking a song. And once or twice, they would couple up and sing the song together, sometimes with Changbin and Hyunjin, other times with Seungmin and Jisung. There are times when even Seungmin and Changbin would sing together or Hyunjin and Jisung, and much to the ex-couple’s chagrin, Jisung and Changbin.

Later when they’re finished and outside, Hyunjin asks for a photo of all four of them. And Hyunjin takes multiples selfies with him at the front followed by Changbin and then Seungmin in Jisung’s arms as the older boy tries to give him a kiss on the cheek. Seungmin always pulls away though because gross.

“Oh, this one’s cute!” Hyunjin says, finally settling with a photo.

“This was really fun,” Changbin admits and gives Jisung a smile. “Nice rapping, dude. We should talk about that side of the music more often.”

“Dude, you too. Can’t believe you can sing and rap like that.”

Oh gods, their boyfriends are getting along. Or, well, Hyunjin’s boyfriend and Seungmin’s fake one. This is no good.

“I had a good time,” Seungmin tells Hyunjin with what he hopes is a genuine smile.

“Good! Me too,” Hyunjin nods and pulls at Changbin. “Let’s hang out again. See you guys soon!”

And then Hyunjin and Changbin are giving them small hugs before walking away.

“That went well!” Jisung comments as he leans close to Seungmin’s face. “So what do you want to do now, rice cake? Sleep over at my place? Me sleep over at yours?”

“That’s not going to happen. Like, ever.” Seungmin pushes Jisung face away. “How about you sleep over at yours and I sleep over at mine.”

“But, rice cake!”

***

It’s minutes before the lecture starts when he gets the notification. Seungmin blanches upon reading it. He really does have rotten luck.

Hyunjin had posted the photo of the four of them on the weekend. And Felix had commented saying “Hey, losers. Don’t forget about the party this weekend. And @kimseung22 I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you have a boyfriend. He’s cute. I need updates!”

Oh, god. This means that he has to pretend to be with Jisung in front of a whole party. And with Felix’s comment on Hyunjin’s post, it’s basically front page news considering how many students from this university follow Hyunjin’s instagram.

Perhaps he can fake being sick on the weekend? Seungmin dismisses the idea because regardless of the fact that he misses the party, he’s going to have to show up to another event with Jisung in hand so that his friends can meet his new boyfriend.

“Ah shit, I’m screwed.” Seungmin thinks he hears Jeongin’s laughter in his mind.

It’s then that Jisung bursts through the door, breathing heavily and grinning at Seungmin like he usually does. Checking the clock, Seungmin notes that Jisung is two minutes early to class. Which, what?

“Rice cake,” Jisung calls as he bounds up to him in excitement and takes the seat next to Seungmin. “Did you see what your friend commented? Is his name Lix? That’s what instagram shows his display name as.”

“Yes I did,” Seungmin answers through gritted teeth. “And no, his name is Yongbok. Call him Yongbok. He loves being called Yongbok. Felix is his Engish name so he only uses it when he’s in an English speaking country.”

“Noted.” Jisung nods seriously before breaking into a big smile. “So does this mean I’m invited to the party? I’m invited, right? I want to go to a party and meet your other friends. That would be fun, don’t you think?”

“Yes, we’re going to the party,” Seungmin answers. “I suppose you’re invited, otherwise Fe- erm, Yongbok would actually beat my ass. And no, it doesn’t sound fun, please. I would rather stay the night at my place watching Netflix. That said, we’re going but we’re not going to stay long, just enough to show that you and I are boyfriends, and then we can dip.”

“But but but,” Jisung gives him a pout. “I actually do want to meet your friends though. You’re cool, so I’m sure your friends are cool too. I’m trying to increase my network, you know?”

“We’ll see what happens,” Seungmin huffs. “Professor Park is here. Zip it now.”

Jisung narrows his eyes at him but does as he’s told.

It’s in the middle of the lecture when Jisung leans over him and whispers, “You smell good today, by the way.”

Seungmin doesn’t reply and tries not to focus on how his face heats up.

***

“Again?!”

Seungmin winces. “I had to, Innie! Felix basically announced it to the whole campus and invited us to the party, and Jisung saw it. Honestly, I had no choice!”

Jeongin huffs. “Yes, you did! You could have faked being sick. You could have said you forgot that you had an exam to study for. Whatever. And then since the quarter is almost ending, you all won’t be able to hang out until a few weeks from now. By then you could just drop the act and tell them that you broke up but are staying friends the way you and Hyunjin are.”

Seungmin scratches his neck.

“Well, I can’t take it back now. I already told Felix and Jisung that we’re going.”

“I swear, for someone so smart, you, like, never think.” Jeongin rolls his eyes and flicks his forehead. Seungmin rubs where’s hit, and Jeongin goes to fix Seungmin’s collar. “Now, make sure not to drink too much, alright?”

Seungmin snickers. “For someone who always acts like he doesn’t care, you sure do show that you care a lot.”

“Shut up,” Jeongin hisses. “I’m only saying this because I don’t want to have to haul my ass up at 2 am when I get a phone call that you’re piss drunk and can’t get yourself back home. You’re lucky your phone still had 10% that night, or else who would have gotten you home?”

Seungmin giggles. “I would have found myself a ride somehow. In any case, my phone is fully charged. And I know a lot more people at this party this time. Plus, I’d have Jisung to get me home if I drink too much.”

“Somehow, that doesn’t make me feel better,” replies Jeongin, styling Seungmin’s hair up and away so that it shows his forehead. “But I suppose since it’s Felix’s place, I’ll be at ease.”

Seungmin smirks. “And when are you going to stop pining over him?”

“Who? What?” Jeongin has a blank look on his face, but Seungmin thinks he knows better. “I don’t know what gave you the idea that I’m pining over him. Or that I even have feelings for him in the first place. Jesus.”

“If you say so.” Seungmin shrugs.

“I’m serious,” Jeongin replies, insistent. “I don’t like him like that. Anyway, how does it look?”

Seungmin turns around and surveys himself in his mirror. “Oh, I look hot.”

Jeongin snorts. “You mean I made you look hot. Bring a hoodie with you. It’ll get cold later.”

“You absolutely sure you don’t want to go?” Seungmin asks, staring at him through his reflection. “It would be nice to spend time with you at a party.”

“You know parties aren’t my thing,” Jeongin crosses his arm and pouts. “And anyway, I wouldn’t want to get in between you and the rice cake lover boy.”

Seungmin picks up the closest thing next to him. It happens to be a hairbrush and makes a motion to throw it at Jeongin, but the younger boy is already running out the door, shrieking.

“Yeah, you better run, you gremlin!”

***

Seungmin waits at the bus station closest to Felix’s place. Jisung sure is taking a while, and it’s already past 8:15. Usually, he’s just 5 minutes late at most, so Seungmin is a little restless.

But then the bus is arriving, and Seungmin thinks he sees Jisung’s usual mop of hair. And sure enough, when the door opens, behind a few people comes a bouncing Jisung looking as giggly as ever.

“Rice cake!” He greets, smiling as usual. “Sorry for being late, I got held up because I was trying to turn in my essay, but my wifi was fucking up, so I had to call in one of my friends to try to fix it for me. Rest assured though, I turned it in on time, no sweat!”

Seungmin rolls his eyes, guessing that the paper was probably due at 8:00 pm and Jisung was sending it at the last hour as usual. It’s then that he finally focuses on what Jisung is wearing. And okay, he looks good. Like, really good. His black skinny jeans are ripped at the knees, and even though his boots still look a little big on the sticks he calls legs, the way he’s standing pigeon-toed has Seungmin feeling things in his tummy.

“You look spiffy again!” Jisung comments, grinning as he brushes off lint from Seungmin’s shoulders. “Really spiffy. And your hair looks good like this. Why don’t you show your forehead more often? It’s really nice.”

Seungmin snorts but notices how Jisung is donning a long-sleeved shirt that clings to his body just enough. His hair is styled a little differently too, swooping back in waves that look natural. 

“You don’t look bad yourself,” Seungmin remarks, before giving him an awkward smile. “And your hair is nice as usual.”

“Finally admitting that I’m the cuter one, eh?” Jisung smirks.

“In your dreams.”

They begin walking to Felix’s place, chatting about whatever that comes to mind. And it’s surprisingly easy to talk to Jisung now, especially with how the older guy feels comfortable in setting the tone and topic of conversation, something that Seungmin struggles with from time to time.

And it feels like no time has passed before they’re standing in front of Felix’s door.

“Okay, so plan: arrive, say hello, eat a little bit, drink a little bit, talk a little bit, and then leave?” Jisung regurgitates.

“Yes,” Seungmin nods. “That’s the idea. Ready?”

Jisung beams at him and rings the doorbell.

The door opens and they’re greeted by Felix with open arms!

“Ah, Seungmin and boyfriend! Come on in!” Felix says. “Drinks are in the kitchen.”

“Thank you,” Jisung bows as he stretches his hands out. “I’m Jisung, by the way. Seungmin’s boyfriend. You must be Yongbok-ssi! Nice to finally meet you.”

Felix blinks and almost growls. Seungmin is laughing then, wiping his cheeks as if there are tears there even though it’s dry as heck.

“What’s so funny?” Jisung looks between them, confused.

“Your boyfriend thinks it’s hilarious when people call me by my Korean name,” Felix deadpans as he takes Jisung’s offered hand and shakes it. “Jokes on him though, I’m getting used to it now. Hello, Jisung-ssi. Nice to finally meet you too. And please call me Felix. You can drop the formalities.”

Jisung nods and goes to Seungmin, immediately finding his hands. He whispers, “You jerk! You said his name is Yongbok. I just made a fool of myself. I’m so getting you back.”

Seungmin cackles.

They’re sitting on a couple of chairs, with half a cup of alcohol in hand, when more people come in.

“So tell me again which ones your friends are. I’m losing count of them,” Jisung says as he puts a chip in his mouth.

“That one is Chan-hyung,” Seungmin points at the pale guy with blonde hair. “His cousin is one of my friends from childhood, so he and I go way back. He always has something going on with these two other guys, wait, let me find them.”

Jisung offers Seungmin a chip. He looks at it for a second wondering why Jisung is feeding him, but Seungmin bites at it as he searches anyway.

“Ah, you see those two by the wall?” Seungmin says as he chews. “The taller one is Woojin-hyung. He’s nice and full of sunshine, but don’t get on his bad side. He can get pretty scary. And the other one is Minho-hyung. You know him too, so he doesn't need an explanation.”

"What do you mean by Chan-ssi has something going on with them?" Jisung asks incredulously. "Minho-hyung never mentioned this."

Seungmin shrugs. "They're all like, lowkey dating, but not really, but sort of, but not. It's different from the relationships that I've personally seen."

He picks up a chip and holds it in front of Jisung too. But just as Jisung’s about to eat it, Seungmin pulls it away and eats it himself.

“Hey, what the heck?”

Seungmin snickers as he takes another one and gives it to Jisung this time, the other boy looking nice and content. Seungmin takes a sip of the _ somaek _ that Jisung made for him. It’s a little gross, too much soju, not enough beer, but whatever.

“You already know Hyunjin and Changbin-ssi,” Seungmin points out before moving onto Felix. “And Felix is the childhood friend I was talking about. We’re also friends with Jeongin. Have I mentioned him?”

Jisung nods as he offers Seungmin another chip. “Once or twice, but I don’t really know much.”

“Well, he’s probably my closest friend,” Seungmin says through the crunch of the snack. He looks down and notes how his cup is almost three-quarters empty despite the fact that they haven’t been here for more than an hour. Jeongin’s advice of not getting too drunk is ringing in his head. “He’s not really a party person, so he never comes out. But I’m pretty sure it’s just because it’s Felix who’s holding it.”

Jisung opens his mouth but Seungmin shakes his head.

“Don’t ask. They’re rather complicated.”

Jisung finishes his cup and looks at Seungmin.

“I’m gonna make another one. Do you want another drink?”

“I’m good,” Seungmin replies. “You go ahead.”

And then they go their separate ways, Jisung to the alcohol counter and Seungmin to the snack table. He glances back at the older boy, sees how he’s pouring soju for himself when Chan and Changbin approach him.

Seungmin decides which chips would go well with alcohol right now. His mind suggests that all types of chips go well with alcohol and proceeds to take a little bit of everything. He finds himself twisting to peek at Jisung again, wondering what type of chips the older boy would like when he sees him tip his head back and laugh with his other friends. Good. At least he’s getting along with them.

From the other side of the room, he catches Jisung’s eyes as he talks to Chan and Changbin. Jisung gives him a quick wink, and Seungmin has to hold back his laughter because the boy ends up closing both of his eyes rather than one.

Seungmin would like to point out the fact that he’s only smiling because Jisung made a fool of himself, not because Seungmin enjoyed it. Hahaha because no.

“Aren’t you two just the cutest,” Felix comes up from behind and rests his head on Seungmin's shoulder. “Even from across the room, you only have eyes for each other.”

“What are you talking about?” Seungmin stammers. While, okay, Seungmin checks over his shoulder for Jisung from time to time, that doesn’t mean that he only has eyes for him. Felix is just being too romantic for his own good. “We don’t just have eyes for each other. You’re being delusional.”

“Oh, am I?” Felix smirks as he straightens himself. “Why are you going pink then?”

“Because I drank a little bit. You know I get Asian glow easily when I drink.”

“And yet it’s the first time that it’s only on your cheeks,” Felix points out with a teasing smile. “What goes on?”

Seungmin drinks from his cup to refrain from answering.

“Just as I thought,” Felix leers. “Oh, look, Jisung’s coming over.”

Seungmin twists around quickly, but there’s nobody approaching them. Fucking Yongbok. He turns back to Felix who’s laughing with his mouth wide open and slapping his thighs as if he just cracked the funniest joke.

“You should have seen your face,” Felix says through his tears. “Oh, this is payback. That was too good.”

Seungmin ignores him. “And what about you, huh? When are you going to grab yourself a partner?”

This shuts Felix up almost instantly. He frowns at Seungmin and shrugs. “When the time’s right, I suppose.”

“So you’re waiting for him to get over whoever he’s trying to get over, are you?” Seungmin taunts. “Look, we both know he’s single. And he probably likes you too, I have a feeling. I do know he likes someone, so hurry and snatch him before somebody else does.”

Felix looks at him with skepticism and something a little bit like resentment(?). Which, what the heck? “Oh, watch out. Your boyfriend is coming back.”

Seungmin scoffs. “Yeah, right. Not falling for that one again. Really, when are you going to ask him out? He told me he’s liked someone since our high school times, and I know it has to be you. Who else could—”

“Hey, rice cake.”

Seungmin jumps at how close Jisung sounded in his ear. “Oh god, you scared me.”

“Did I?” Jisung coos and swipes Seungmin’s cheeks with his thumb. “I didn’t mean to.”

“And this is my time to go. See you lovebirds later,” Felix pipes up before taking a long swig of his cup and marching away.

“What’s up with him?” Jisung asks as he tames Seungmin’s hair to how it had looked earlier.

“I don’t know,” Seungmin replies, adjusting Jisung’s shirt so that it's centered and doesn’t show off one of his shoulders too much. “Our relationship is kind of weird, honestly. He and I go way back, but our friendship comes and goes, and I have no idea why.”

Jisung tilts his head to the side. “No idea at all?”

“Nope,” says Seungmin, this time with Jisung fixing Seungmin’s collar. “Regardless of that, he’s still one of my closest friends, second only to Jeongin of course.”

Jisung nods.

The night goes by with little problems, lots of conversations and laughs with Felix and his hyungs, and Seungmin tries his best to avoid Hyunjin and Changbin. But just as Seungmin mentions that it’s about time to leave, Yeji and Lia pull them over to a classic game of Spin the Bottle. Oh, Seungmin hated this game so much in high school.

“Honestly, I still have so much to do,” Seungmin tries valiantly, but Yeji is nothing but persistent.

“That can wait,” Yeji retaliates as she pulls them closer to the couch. Either everyone has a really strong grip, or Seungmin is just a weakling who cannot escape for the life of him. “I know you, Seungmin. Anything you needed to do, you must have finished before going to this party. And anything you still need to do, you can finish in an instant. So sit your nerdy butt down on the couch with your boyfriend and play.”

Seungmin is left gaping like a fish as Yeji goes to invite other people to play. Jisung is right next to him, snickering at his face.

“Ooh, she got you there, rice cake. _ And _ she called you nerdy. I like her already.”

“You’re legit a butthole.”

When more people come to join the game, Seungmin finds himself sitting closer to Jisung. He blames it on the fact that other people want to sit on the couch too, and he’d rather stick to Jisung than to people he’s not as close with. So yes, it’s okay if he’s now basically cuddled up in Jisung’s arms because it saves space, and honestly, isn’t this how they’re supposed to act anyway? He finds himself leaning his head on Jisung’s shoulder for no reason at all.

“So, flops. I’m assuming you know how to play Spin the Bottle?” Yeji bellows as she plays with the bottle in her hand. “Who wants to go first?”

Everyone is dead silent, surely not wanting to be the first victim of the game.

“Ah, Kim Seungmin! Thanks for volunteering.” She states, giving him a mischievous grin as she hands him the bottle.

Seungmin rolls his eyes and reluctantly lays down the bottle and spins it. It lands on Minho, who’s now wiggling his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

“Come to papa, baby,” Minho says with outstretched hands, and half the room snickers.

“Gross.” But Seungmin gives him a quick peck on the lips anyway, wiping his lips as soon as he’s finished. “I need to bleach my lips now, thanks.”

Minho doesn’t say anything, just gives him a kissy face as Seungmin returns to Jisung’s arms.

“You’re too cute,” Jisung admits.

“Shut it.”

The next couple of rounds go by in a blur, mostly because Seungmin doesn’t really care who kisses who unless he knows them personally.

But then Hyunjin is spinning, and Seungmin tries his best to look only at the bottle and not at the man spinning it. The bottle slows down to a person somewhere to Seungmin’s left. As long as it’s not him, it’s all good.

Changbin ends up getting Lia, and the boy gives her a quick kiss on the lips. The next couple of rounds go at that pace, nothing too dramatic or scandalous.

But then it’s Felix’s turn, and Seungmin kind of wishes Jeongin is here now.

“Alright, let’s see who’s about to get some Felix lovin’.” He spins the bottle, and Seungmin closes his mouth as it slows down, passing Hyunjin just the slightest bit.

Felix is walking over to Changbin with grabby hands. Changbin is laughing now and Hyunjin is giving him a giggly warning of “Half a second, Felix. Only half a second!”

Seungmin turns to Jisung and whispers, “I can’t believe one of my closest friends almost kissed my ex-boyfriend.”

Seungmin feels how Jisung goes rigid at the comment. Seungmin looks up at him just as Jisung says in a low voice, “Hyunjin’s your ex?”

He blinks up at him. Was this not established? Did Seungmin not mention it? “Did I not tell you?”

Jisung shakes his head.

“Oh,” Seungmin says, feeling guilty for god knows why. It’s not as if Jisung even needed to know that. “Well, yeah, he’s my ex-boyfriend. Why else would we… you know?”

Jisung snorts, but Seungmin can see the uncomfortable expression on his face. “I thought he was just your long-time rival or something. I know you’re always competitive, so I figured you just always liked having the upper hand on him, but I should’ve realized it was more than that.”

“No, it’s nothing more than that. I don’t have any feelings for him, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Seungmin whispers.

“That wasn’t what I was thinking.”

Due to how deep into their talk they were, Seungmin and Jisung didn’t realize that it was almost Jisung’s turn. Apparently, Woojin, Minho, and Yeji had gone while they were conversing. Chan spins the bottle. Seungmin holds his breath as it ends on Seungmin.

Chan sticks out his tongue in eagerness and approaches Seungmin with open hands, almost as if he’s about to pull Seungmin up by the armpits.

“You never let me show you affection,” Chan begins as he grabs both of Seungmin’s cheeks. He turns to Jisung. “May I?”

“Go ahead.”

Chan gives him a lengthy kiss on the cheek, and it goes on for a couple of seconds and is still going.

“Ack, stop, you’re suffocating me!” Seungmin tries through his giggles.

Chan finishes his kiss with a loud smack before planting a fast one right on his lips. And Seungmin immediately rubs at the offending spot, much to Chan’s amusement.

Someone Seungmin doesn’t know goes and kisses Woojin on the lips, and then it’s Jisung’s turn.

“Wish me luck, rice cake.”

“Trust me, I’m the last person you want to wish you luck,” Seungmin comments. His luck is truly rotten.

Smiling, Jisung spins the bottle and it lands on Minho. The older boy releases a loud whoop.

“I get a whole set of boyfriends,” Minho states as displays his lips and points at it. “Right here, lover boy.”

Jisung goes to kiss Minho on the lips, and Jisung comes back with a funny expression.

It’s kind of cute. But then Jisung is handing him the bottle, and oh shit. Seungmin doesn’t know why, but he has a bad feeling about this. It feels heavy in Seungmin’s hands.

His heart in his throat, Seungmin spins the bottle hoping it wouldn’t land on the three people he’d rather not kiss. Remember when Seungmin talked about having bad luck all the way from the beginning? Well, it sure is acting up right now because it lands on the person who he wants to physically interact with the least.

His mouth drops when the bottleneck points directly at Hyunjin. Everybody falls silent at this, and Seungmin has to bite his lips to stop himself from grimacing at the weird stroke of unluckiness.

Hyunjin breathes out a peal of choked laughter. “We should stop. Seungminnie, if you don’t feel comfortable, it’s totally—”

“No, it’s fine,” Seungmin blurts out. To hell with his pride for making his mouth talk before consulting with his brain.

“Oh, okay,” replies Hyunjin, giving Changbin a quick glance. Swallowing, Seungmin also has the need to look back at Jisung for who knows why. When he does, Jisung is looking directly at him with no expression. _ Perhaps this is a bad idea_.

Before his mind ponders on that though, Seungmin is getting up and crossing the distance to Hyunjin. He can feel eyes boring straight into him, but he chooses to ignore all of them. With a huff, Seungmin bends down and grabs Hyunjin’s face before planting a short, soft kiss on the mouth.

Seungmin is surprised to note that he doesn’t feel anything as their lips touch, just the sensation of a kiss and nothing else.

When he pulls back, it’s to see that Hyunjin is a little flushed, most likely due to the embarrassment of it all. He feels it too. Seungmin turns back to Jisung, giving him a tight-lipped smile. He doesn’t really know what to say, so he just trudges back and hopes the next person would just spin the freaking bottle already.

“Cute,” Jisung says with a smile, and if Seungmin can see how it doesn’t reach his eyes like usual, he doesn’t comment on it. Instead, he takes Jisung’s arm and wraps it around his shoulders as he cuddles into him.

The next few rounds go quickly (and with a copious amount of erotic energy), the more electric ones being Woojin having to kiss Felix (he does it on the cheek three times before giving him a chaste kiss on the lips), and Yeji’s spin landing on Lia (and they peck each other on the lips first before kissing for at least three whole seconds), and Chan’s landing on Minho (and they go at it like animals for at least half a minute), and two people who Seungmin didn’t know that made out for like ten seconds.

And then it’s Jisung’s turn. Jisung is grinning as he reaches to spin the bottle, and Seungmin has an overwhelming need to place his hand on the boy’s thigh. So he does.

Seungmin narrows his eyes as the bottle slows down to a stop with the pointy end facing him. Never underestimate the misfortune of Kim Seungmin. Jisung dips his head as he turns his face to give Seungmin a quick kiss on the lips.

As soon Jisung pulls back, a round of boos and jeers erupt.

“That’s not a proper kiss,” someone says.

“Yeah, kiss him like you mean it!” another person hollers.

“Couple’s kisses aren’t that tame, come on.” 

And that’s the last one before Jisung swings his legs over and straddles Seungmin’s lap. The older boy places his hands on Seungmin’s shoulder, and Seungmin can do nothing but focus on Jisung.

“We should give them what they want,” Jisung says, looking down at him. “Don’t you think?”

Without blinking, Seungmin nods. “Yeah.”

Jisung is looking at him with caution, eyes dark and giving a warning. He goes in slow, almost as if telling Seungmin that _ if he wants to back out he should do it now_. Seungmin is stubborn though, and he doesn’t want the crowd to give boos again. So he stays still as Jisung tilts his head and closes his eyes.

Seungmin meets him halfway because he should. As soon as their lips touch, Seungmin releases a sigh of relief. Jisung’s lips are nice and plump, even though they don’t look it at first glance. They taste like watermelon too and perhaps a little bit of beer, but Seungmin can endure. Jisung cups Seungmin’s face as he begins to kiss with a little bit more force, mouth open and hot breath being exchanged between them. In return, Seungmin rests his hands on Jisung’s slim waist and kisses back just as hard, diving in at every peck. Seungmin’s lips are wet, and he’s not sure if it’s from him or Jisung, but he finds that he doesn’t care. 

His body gets uncomfortably warm, so he unzips his hoodie and takes it off, much to the people’s cheers. Jisung helps push it without breaking the kiss, and once again, a couple of people start hooting and hollering. And Seungmin should feel uncomfortable for displaying a lot of public affection, but he doesn’t. They make out for what seems like ten seconds, but when Seungmin finally pulls back, breathless and tired to the bone, it’s to see Jisung looking the same and the crowd of players having dispersed.

Maybe it was more like ten minutes?

It seems they were kissing for quite a while, and Seungmin blushes at the fact that their lips were connected for so long that everyone else grew tired of it and moved onto something else. Jisung is looking at him with wide eyes, lips glossy from saliva even under the dim lights.

Okay. Okay, so there’s a tingling feeling left on Seungmin’s lips, and perhaps he feels a sense of unwillingness to separate when Jisung finally gets off his lap and settles himself on Seungmin’s side. And perhaps he also wants to turn Jisung’s face towards him and kiss Jisung again. And that... that’s definitely ill-advised, considering he shouldn’t even be liking Jisung in the first place.

“I think—”

“Seungmin, I—”

Jisung clears his throat. “You first.”

“I think... I think I should go,” says Seungmin gently.

“Oh.” Seungmin can see how Jisung’s eyes go wide, emotions flitting from surprise to understanding and something akin to dejection. Though that could just be Seungmin making things up for what he wants the older boy to feel. “Are you feeling sleepy or drunk? Let’s take you home.”

Jisung does end up taking him home.

They don’t talk on the way back at all.

And when Seungmin thanks Jisung for accompanying him home and says goodbye to him, the older boy says it back with only half the usual enthusiasm.

***

_Seungmin (12:42 am): Can I come over?_

The reply is almost instant.

***

Seungmin is ringing the doorbell within minutes.

“Hey, you okay?” Jeongin asks as he opens the door, and Seungmin just hugs him. 

“Need cuddles.”

Jeongin sighs. “Alright, alright, let’s take you to the couch first.”

Jeongin closes the door and locks it, before pulling Seungmin towards the sofa. The younger boy sits down first before he opens his arms for Seungmin to crawl into. This is what Seungmin loves about Jeongin. He doesn’t ask too many questions, and if Seungmin doesn’t provide answers to the questions he asks, Jeongin doesn’t keep questioning him.

Jeongin pets his hair as Seungmin burrows more into his neck.

“I’m not going to badger you, but just answer me this. People didn’t find out that you guys are fake dating, did they?” Jeongin asks softly.

Seungmin shakes his head.

And that seems to be answer enough because he’s pulling Seungmin closer.

Later, when all is quiet and both Seungmin and Jeongin are on the verge of falling asleep, Seungmin whispers, “I think I like Jisung.”

Jeongin stills at this before breathing out.

“That’s not such a bad thing,” Jeongin says gently. Seungmin supposes he’s right. But he just doesn’t really know what to do now. “But before asking if it’s good or bad, what first gave you that idea?”

Seungmin swallows. “Well, it’s kind of been building up from the beginning, I suppose. But I didn’t really notice until we made out in front of everyone at the party.”

Jeongin chokes. “You guys made out in front of everyone?”

“We were playing Spin the Bottle, and everyone wanted it, Innie,” Seungmin starts lamely. It all sounds… Lame. Even to his ears. “You know I’m weak when I’m put on the spot and there’s a crowd involved.”

“Okay, so you guys made out, and I’m guessing you liked it,” Jeongin says evenly, almost like he’s stating facts. “There’s nothing wrong with that. If I’m not mistaken, he probably likes you too.”

Seungmin looks up at him, but Jeongin has his eyes closed. Like this, with Seungmin cuddled into his arms, Jeongin looks serene. “What makes you say that?”

Jeongin snorts. “For one, who wouldn’t like you? You’re actually perfection personified.”

Seungmin blushes at this.

“And two, he’s done all of this for you, and for what? He gets nothing in return. You didn’t offer money. You didn’t offer schoolwork. You offered nothing except literally hanging out together and being all couple-y. That sounds like he likes you to me.”

Seungmin blinks up at him. Jeongin says things so calmly, level-headed. And for the first time, Seungmin wishes he fell in love with Jeongin from the beginning.

“Perhaps you’re right,” Seungmin says and places his ears on Jeongin’s chest. “Let’s talk later. Sleep sounds good right now.”

Jeongin hums in agreement.

***

When Seungmin first wakes up, it’s to see that it’s past 3:00 am and that Jeongin is shivering. So he snakes out his friend’s embrace and picks him up bridal style so they could go to Jeongin’s bed.

Seungmin lays him down, and the younger boy doesn’t stir much. When Jeongin is safely onto his bed, Seungmin silently scolds him for putting up with Seungmin’s bullshit even past midnight and pulls the blanket so that it covers Jeongin all the way to his chest.

“Thank you, Innie. You’re the best.” With a smile, he brushes Jeongin’s hair back and kisses his forehead. “Good night.”

***

When Seungmin wakes up again, he’s on his own bed with a small headache, but nothing that a hangover’s soup can’t fix.

It’s still early when he receives a text from Jisung. He reads it through his notifications, not the actual messaging app.

_ Jisung (9:58 am): hey rice cake! you feeling okay? i can come over with some soup or coffee. _

Seungmin wants to reply, but after the revelation from yesterday, he’s not quite sure if he wants to face Jisung just yet. So he leaves him on _ unread _and goes about his day.

He’s finished making and eating his soup. Though the packet was a little too spicy for him, it was still delicious nonetheless. It’s when he’s just completed washing his bowl that Jisung texts again.

_ Jisung (11:33 am): rice cake are you still not awake? you’re usually awake by now… i guess you were more hungover than i thought! Hahaha _

Like earlier, Seungmin doesn’t open his message. He’s content in not being with Jisung right now, not looking at him, not thinking about how his lips tasted like fruits and summer.

Seungmin shakes his thoughts away. Whoever popularized the quote ‘out of sight, out of mind’ has definitely not experienced having feelings yet.

Maybe he should talk about it with Jisung. What outcome does Seungmin want here? Talking with Jisung will lead to a couple of possibilities, and Seungmin isn’t quite yet sure what he wants. 

First, Jisung might not even have a single gay bone in his body. And even though they made out for quite a while last night, there’s still a chance, small as it may be, for Jisung to still be straight as a stick. Seungmin isn’t ruling this possibility out since he knows percentages are still possibilities, no matter how tiny they are.

Second, Jisung may reciprocate his feelings, but the big question would be if either of them would be willing to do anything about it. While yes, sure, kissing and cuddling is fine, will they be ready for a relationship? And there’s always the chance that one of them likes the other more, and that’s never a good sign. In any case, Seungmin’s not sure if he’s quite ready to get into a relationship with Jisung just yet. It’s all still too new.

The third possibility is that Jisung does not feel the same. And while that’s neither good nor bad, Seungmin isn’t sure if he’s ready to hear it. It will be a good way to incentivize Seungmin to drop his newfound feelings for Jisung. And that’s a little sad in and of itself.

Seungmin sighs as he puts his phone on silent and contemplates.

He ends up napping for a little bit and watching Netflix to pass the time. He succeeds blanking his mind for a while before he starts to feel restless once more. Looking at his phone, it’s to see Jisung has texted twice since then.

_ Jisung (2:19 pm): rice cake do you have any plans today? we can hang out and study for some music history or something.. :) _

This was more than two hours ago.

It’s only by chance that Jisung texts right then and there.

_ Jisung (4:41): seungmin? i’m coming over. _

What? Seungmin checks the time and sees that that was about 20 minutes ago. Oh shit, Jisung is going to be here any minute now. Seungmin brushes his teeth first. He’s not sure why since he’s already brushed it in the morning, but the need to cleanse his mouth and freshen his breath was rather overwhelming. He manages to get out of the shirt he was wearing all day and into a new one when the doorbell rings. _ Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. _

“Coming!” Seungmin tries to shout as loud as he can.

It’s a whole minute later when Seungmin opens the door to a rather worried looking Jisung.

“Rice cake, you’re alive!” Jisung exclaims, though Seungmin can detect how the tone of it sounds slightly forced. “I brought caffeine!”

“You brought coffee?” Seungmin asks as he makes way for Jisung to come in.

“Yeah! I got it just how you like it. Café latte with a dollop of cream and two sugar packets!”

Seungmin is rather impressed at the fact that Jisung remembers. So maybe Jisung has been paying attention to the little details of him as well. Seungmin takes the cup offered to him. As usual, when Jisung takes a sip, he makes a funny face at the bitterness. Seungmin shuts his mouth, lest he blurts out how endearing it is.

“Would you like to watch some Netflix?” Seungmin invites. _ Please say no, please say no_.

“And chill?” Jisung adds, before coughing out strained laughter.

“Just kidding. What are we watching?” Jisung asks as he plops down onto the couch, spreading himself on it as if he’s at home. Seungmin just shakes his head.

“I'm just watching Friends,” Seungmin shrugs, choosing to sit far away from Jisung so that no part of their bodies are touching. “It’s a good way to practice English.”

“Sweet, I’m down.”

Seungmin plays the episode. Though he finds himself looking at Jisung from the corner of his eyes from time to time. He’s not sure why, but he’s been rather… aware of Jisung’s presence. He’s a little too attentive about their distance, always deciding just how far they should be from each other, always knowing the distance so that he can adjust his person until he’s not touching Jisung.

It’s not even the end of the episode when Jisung turns to him.

“Hey, did I do something?”

Seungmin licks his lips. “No, you didn’t. Why do you ask?”

The TV is completely forgotten now, and Seungmin can’t take his eyes from Jisung because the older boy is scooting closer. And it kind of feels like Seungmin can’t breathe.

“You were kind of off last night, almost down. I mean, you didn’t even talk the whole way through,” Jisung reasons, using hand gestures to prove his point. He comes closer with every word. “And today, you didn’t answer any of my texts even though I’m pretty sure you woke up early, Seungmin. You’re the type to wake up earlier than me, even if you don’t like it. And now, you’re sitting so far that it actually feels kind of weird because we’ve been basically attached at the hip the last couple of weeks.”

Seungmin is opening and closing his mouth like a fish, but no word is coming out because how can he even voice out the fact that he’s avoiding Jisung?

“So you’ve been avoiding me?” A flash of hurt streaks past Jisung’s expression, and Seungmin facepalms for thinking out loud. “Why are you avoiding me?”

“I-I’m not avoiding you,” Seungmin lies, trying to reassure him because it seems like Jisung is getting a little bit emotional.

“It’s not because of what happened last night, is it?” Jisung asks, letting out a forced chuckle. “Boys kiss boys all the time, right? It’s not a big deal. I mean, unless you make it a big deal. It’s not a big deal to you, right, Seungmin?”

Seungmin bites his lip. Is Jisung saying that some boys kiss boys for no reason? Is this Jisung’s way of saying he’s heard loud and clear what Seungmin was thinking last night and wants no part of it? That he would rather just forget that it happened because it’s no big deal and no big deal means no homo, right?

“Because if it’s a big deal to you, Seungmin, I won’t do it again. I promise. I didn’t mean to go so far. I had only planned on kissing you a little bit, but I went overboard didn’t I? I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

Which, what?

“No, I wasn’t uncomfortable at all,” Seungmin blurts out. And Jisung’s eyes widen at his words. “If anything, I thought I liked it a little too much.”

But then Jisung is gawking at him, opening his mouth to say something but closing it again before he makes a sound.

“You’re right that I’ve been avoiding you. However, it’s not for the reasons you think. Actually, it’s my fault. I liked the kiss too much, so I thought I should stop seeing your stupid face for a while because what if you didn’t like it, you know? But then I hear you talking about how you went overboard, but you didn’t. It was just right. It felt good. It felt great. And then you promised that you won’t do it again, but please, please, please break that promise because I kind of really want to kiss your face right now.”

A million emotions pass by Jisung’s face before finally settling on the last. And then Jisung is surging forward and kissing Seungmin again, the way he did last night. It’s warm and wet and surprisingly all lips, no tongue.

Jisung is the one to pull back first, resting his forehead on Seungmin’s.

“So what now?” the older boy asks, lips red and shiny.

“I don’t know,” Seungmin answers because he doesn’t. He’s not sure. 

“Perhaps, if you want, we can try it out and get to know each other,” Jisung suggests.

Seungmin smiles at him and nods.

“And if somewhere along the way, you think we’re both ready to move forward, then we can.”

Seungmin beams, pulling Jisung closer so they can start kissing again.

“I’d like that.”

Seungmin would like to end with the fact that he has bad luck with a lot of things, but meeting Han Jisung is not one of them.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! You reached the end of that junk asjhdfja lolol. Thank you for finishing this fic!
> 
> Follow my Twitter: @[seungminhot](https://twitter.com/seungminhot) !!! 
> 
> Tell me what you thought about it! KUDOS AND COMMENTS PLEASE, I BEG.


End file.
